The automated strike zone has become an inevitability that baseball fans have largely grown to accept, as most fans agree that it is a long time coming and would be a great improvement for the sport.
However, one ace isn’t so fond of the idea and thinks that we should keep things the way they are.
San Francisco Giants ace Logan Webb spoke with Chris Rose (via Talkin’ Baseball) and said that he doesn’t want an automated strike zone at all, saying, “everybody that comes up hates it…it slows down the game,” and added that he gets the most out-of-zone called strikes in baseball.
Logan Webb doesn’t want an automated strike zone in MLB
“Everybody that comes up hates it… It slows down the game” pic.twitter.com/45uHHvJSvp
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 4, 2024
Webb said that he believes hitters are in favor of the automated strike zone but pitchers generally don’t want it, pointing out how many walks there have been in the minors this year when using the automated zone.
He believes it will slow the game down, which is the opposite of what recent rule changes have tried to do with the pitch clock and ghost runner in extra innings.
The automated strike zone is being used in all Triple-A stadiums this season and the league will reportedly consider using it in 2025 at the major league level.
Fans likely won’t be as loud calling for the automated zone since Angel Hernandez just retired, but if the only argument against it is that it would slow the game down and that pitchers wouldn’t get the benefit of bad calls, that seems like an issue that should be able to be fixed.
